When they come for the home of Nurse Maggie McWhite, will the neighbors of Homeville stand up for what's right?

“Fannie and Freddie” captures its first audience–the illustrators! From left to right, Connie, Dan, Caylin, Kat. Photo by Becky.

The books are here! We think they look great! It’s incredible that we were able to harness the talent of so many people to produce such a good product so quickly. Tonight the illustrators came over for a party in Becky’s hallway to appreciate the finished product and eat snacks. We are really excited to share them with you! Stay tuned for details about a book release party in the Minneapolis area. We will soon be selling them all over the area and beyond. Meanwhile you can purchase a copy here.

Jillia explains her creative vision for the next scene to Becky while Cat sketches in the background. Photo by Mark R. Brown.

The illustrations for this book draw from a phenomenal talent pool. We pooled our art supplies and children’s books and turned Becky’s unfurnished apartment into an illustration studio as everyone spread out on the floor and worked together. Connie drew our main Homeville backdrop. Dan stopped by almost unannounced and whipped up an incredible Vegas scene out of his head. Eva spent hours upon hours perfecting our three main characters. Caylin, Kat, Cat, and Becky worked on miscellaneous characters and props. Becky found the ocean on a postcard Elizabeth painted in 2005.

Then Jillia drew from her theater background to be our artistic director, arranging all the characters and props in different scenes. Mark took amazing photos. Meanwhile in Seattle Bill stayed up all night finishing up the graphic design.

As a result we created an incredible collaborative process, which was not only really fun but also produced what we think are really stunning images. Here’s a look at how the illustrations came together.

Eva prepares her final version of Fannie and Freddie, using Connie’s Homeville for reference. Photo by Becky.

Kat has finished the corn and moved on to the moneybags. Photo by Becky.

Dan has finished Vegas and is now making accessories for Homeville. Photo by Becky.

We will be at the Occupy Homes MN table at the Twin Cities Anarchist Bookfair this weekend! Stop by and hear about the misguided adventures of our bumbling villains, and how the people of Homeville stand up and fight back. You may even be able to pre-order the book, which will be out in just a few weeks. Come to the Powderhorn Park Rec Center, 10 am-6 pm, Saturday, Sept. 15 and Sunday, Sept. 16.